Category Archives: Sin

Are You Talking To Me?

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1 Timothy 6:20-21

Paul ends this letter to Timothy with a warning I think too many Christians don’t think applies to them. And I believe the Church is seeing a negative effect as a result.

Paul says to guard your heart because if you don’t, you are in danger of walking away from the faith. He doesn’t say guard your heart because if you don’t, that means you were never really saved in the first place. He doesn’t say guard your heart because if you don’t, you won’t have an effective testimony.

Some translations say Paul begins verse 20 with the words, “Oh, Timothy.” Don’t you get loving Father vibes from that? Isn’t this the voice of someone who dearly loves and is pleading with his loved one to hang on, make good choices, be careful because the one who loves sees danger ahead? Even if verse 20 in your translations simply says, “Timothy” you can hear Paul’s love for and concern for young Timothy throughout the letter.

Here’s the thing. If Timothy was in no danger of wandering or walking away from the faith, there would be no reason for Paul to say anything. There is clearly a warning concerning a very real danger. For Paul to end his letter this way tells me this is urgent

I say the Church is seeing the negative effect of Christians not heeding this warning because of the false teaching that has infiltrated our ranks and is being accepted as truth. Too many Christians seem to think that because they are saved, God won’t let them go no matter what they do, or believe. So they accept the “godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge” and don’t consider the consequences. They not only do not guard their hearts, they freely give their hearts to the lies.

We Christians, you and I, need to guard our hearts. How? Read the Bible. Do a word search and find all the verses that use the word you choose. Faith? Truth? Repentance? Sin? Hell? Money? Tolerance? Do you know for yourself what the Bible says about these things?

Find a Bible believing church and hold your pastor and teachers accountable for what they say. Ask questions. Research for yourself. Guard your heart.

Turn off the religious channels on your TV. I can confidently say there is more false teaching than truth there. Guard your heart.

Stop spending more time reading about the Bible than you do opening the pages of God’s Word and devouring it for yourself. It’s not up to an author to guard your heart. Guard your own heart.

Quit thinking God forgives all your sin because one day years ago you accepted Jesus as your Savior. Friend, it is true God forgives your sin… if you confess. You ought to be confessing and repenting every time God brings to mind a sin you are committing in the present. Don’t assume He turns a blind eye to any sin. Guard your heart.

I will say this: if Timothy, the young preacher entrusted with overseeing the Church, the spiritual son of Paul needed to guard his heart, I most certainly need to guard mine. I ought to be reading these verses and ask God, “Are you talking to me?”

Do you honestly think He would reply, “No. You’re the exception?”

All the Riches of God

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1 Timothy 6:17-19

I read a devotional by AW Tozer every morning, and today he reminded me I have a right to claim all the riches of the God-head, “in mercy given.” Jesus spoke about riches. Paul warns us about riches. Their message is clear: we have got to stop equating God’s riches with things that moths and rust destroy, and things that can be lost or stolen. (Matthew 6:19-20). God’s riches are NOT financial or material in any way. They are so much more!

Jesus said in Matthew 6:21 “Where your treasure is, there your heart is also.”

This time of year the phrase, “what do you want for Christmas?” is the theme of the day. Sometimes you don’t even have to ask a person what they want. Wives buy what they want and slap their husband’s name on it. Kids don’t have to be asked. They WANT you to know. Some people have ongoing wish lists on Amazon so you get them exactly what they want.

And some people approach God with the same bravado. I want. I want. I deserve.

Dear one, we have a treasure more precious, more intimate, more personal than any beautifully wrapped gift under the Christmas tree. And sadly, it’s the gift most ignored.

Recently a house in our area sold for $30 million. One house. $30,000,000.00! What if the guy bought it with the intention of giving it to his wife for Christmas this year? We’d say that would be an extravagant gesture of love. But hear me when I say, that generous gift would be worthless when the owner steps from this life into eternity, no matter how much love was attached to it.

Worthless.

Listen to Tozer describe a gift much more generous, a truly extravagant gesture of love:

“What a blessed thought – that an infinite God can give all of Himself to each of His children! He does not distribute Himself that each may have a part, but to each one He gives ALL of Himself as fully as if there were no others.” (emphasis mine)

Can you imagine? God gives ALL of Himself to anyone who receives Him. The God of the Universe, Holy God who owns the cattle on a thousand hills and the wealth in every mine, the One who punished Himself without mercy so that I, so that you, can be forgiven. I have 100% of His love and attention 100% of the time. And so do you if you believe. I can’t explain how. But I know it’s true.

And that’s the gift that’s worth everything. That’s the only gift I will take with me when my life on earth is ended. That’s the gift that will usher me into heaven and a glorious union with God forever.

If you’ve never surrendered to God and received this incredible gift, do it. God wants to give you Himself, all the riches of the God-head wrapped up in the baby in the manger and in the perfect sacrifice on the cross for your salvation. He is the gift of light in this dark world, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and He is yours for the taking. All of Him!

Don’t let another day go buy with that unopened gift at your fingertips. Receive it. It will change your life in ways you can only imagine.

And if you are already a child of God through the blood of Jesus, check your heart. Even we can get distracted, especially this time of year. Remember where your treasure is, that’s where you heart is.

Thank you, God for the extravagant gift of Yourself! My mind can’t fathom the richness of it, but my heart accepts it with all the love I can give back to you.

Unwholesome Talk

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1 Timothy 6:3-5

What is unwholesome talk? Certainly coarse language falls under that umbrella. There’s nothing wholesome about gossip, either. Paul says false doctrine is unwholesome.

Unwholesome talk reveals a prideful person, someone who doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and he doesn’t realize how foolish he sounds. He often just likes to hear himself speak.

Unwholesome talk leads to envy, strife, reviling, and evil suspicions. I had to think about that for a bit. But you know if you listen to gossip, you begin to suspect what you are hearing is true. It can change the way you feel toward someone. Unwholesome talk drives a wedge between people, and that does not honor God.

Paul says this about unwholesome talk: it is the useless wrangling of men of corrupt minds and destitute of truth.

Ouch.

The idea of unwholesome talk has been heavy on my heart lately. I won’t go into details but it is what is causing strife, hurt feelings, discord among people I love, just like Paul warned. I wish I could say I’ve remained faultless.

James tells us to control our tongue, that what comes out of our mouths reveals what is in our hearts. I don’t think we stop and consider the power in our words, or the fact that those words are like an x-ray into our souls.

I don’t want my conversations to be described as the wrangling of a woman with a corrupt mind, destitute of truth. I represent Jesus, after all. I am His voice to a lost world. My words matter.

And so do yours.

Getting Along

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1 Timothy 5:1-2

We call the Church a family of faith, but families aren’t always functional. Families can be plagued with jealousy, contempt, resentment, fighting, and hatred. Families can be plagued with co-dependency, control, unrealistic expectations, unfair treatment, and abuse. The word “family” isn’t always a picture of a loving group of people who are gathered together. Next week is Thanksgiving. Not every table will have harmony.

I’ve been asked what it was like growing up with five girls in the family (with one bathroom). Some have marveled that we are all still friends after seventy years. I tell people we weren’t allowed to not get along. We were raised to be friends.

That’s not to say there was never conflict. We are human. There was tension and disagreements on occasion. But I don’t remember getting away with harsh words toward one another. Mom and Dad never laughed at or ignored those times of conflict. (my sisters might remember things differently. But I doubt it).

Paul tells Timothy that we should treat each other in the church like family. For some that might bring to mind an unhappy picture. But in these two verses I think we can read that we are to treat each other with gentleness when there is an issue, be respectful. And I think that’s easier done if a problem is addressed immediately, before it gets out of hand.

And, I think this might be the key to a functional and loving family of faith: God is saying we are not allowed to not get along.

If Not You

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1 Timothy 1:3-11

Paul left Timothy in Ephesus and gave him the responsibility of guarding the truth against false doctrine and those who were teaching it. Makes me wonder who is guarding the truth today. Or are the things Paul warned Timothy about not applicable in 2025?

The thing is, I don’t think false doctrine is a result of evil men sitting around a table in a dark, smoke-filled room with Satan, coming up with strategies to derail the Gospel. I think it generally comes from good men wanting the Gospel to be inviting, fun, attractive, and accepted by all. What could be wrong in that, right?

I think these are probably praying men, but not listening men. They may tell God what they’re going to do for Him, without hearing what He wants from them. They use Scripture, but they don’t understand it.

The Church has used “church-speak” for so long the words have taken on false meaning without us realizing it.

“God is love,” has come to mean God accepts everyone.

“Don’t judge,” means what is right for me doesn’t have to be right for you.

“Enter his court with praise,” means worship ought to be fun, our demonstration equal to that of a football fan at the Super Bowl, an experience that leaves us with a euphoric, spiritual high.

Do you recognize the subtle falseness that renders such doctrine fruitless? How can we recognize the counterfeit? By studying the real thing. Our time in the Bible ought to exceed our time listening to sermons, reading commentaries and religious literature.

Bank tellers learn to recognize counterfeit bills, not by studying the counterfeit, but by studying the real thing so that they can recognize ANY deviation.

Do you want to guard the truth? Read your Bible. Read it again. Read it often. Memorize it. Think on it. Let it become so real to you that you can recognize ANY deviation.

Then what? Is it enough for you to know the truth? If we are to guard the truth we need to speak up. Question. Point out errors. Hold each other accountable for what we believe and say.

If not you – who?

Stay Out of the Fire

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James 1

I watched part of an interview with Erika Kirk this morning. She was asked if she wanted a public apology from Jimmy Kimmel for the lies he told about Charlie’s assassination. She said the show did reach out to her and asked how they could make it right. Her answer to them was, “This is not our issue.” She went on to say that forcing an apology didn’t interest her, that this issue isn’t between the two of them, but between Jimmy and God. She said she didn’t want or need an apology. Case closed.

What I got from what she said about that is that she refuses to enter into a battle with Kimmel over what he said. A public apology to make himself look human wasn’t on her agenda. Jimmy was not on her agenda. No hatred or anger on her part. Simply disinterest, and removing herself from a volatile situation.

Why can’t we all have that attitude when someone wrongs us? Why immediately jump into the ring, start swinging, and make it bigger than it ought to be?

“Well she disrespected me.” or “He started it…”

Just because someone started a fire, doesn’t mean you have to go stand in the flames.

James tells us, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger, for human anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness.” (1:19b-29)

Is accomplishing God’s righteousness on your agenda? The old “what would Jesus do?” is a questions we might ask ourselves. When they lied about him he opened not his mouth. He picked his. battles. And so should we.

I hear God say today, accomplishing God’s righteousness ought to be our goal. I might get my feelings hurt today. You might have someone pull out in front of you in traffic. We might be lied about, gossiped about, judged unfairly. How do we accomplish God’s righteousness in those situations?

Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.

You don’t go and jump into the flames just because someone started a fire.

It’s Not Your Choice

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Ruth 1:6-14

I’m doing something a bit different in my personal devotional time. I started looking at the book of Ruth as I read “The Girl’s Still Got It” by Liz Curtis Higgs. (WaterBrook Press, 2012). I think she’s a good writer, clever and amusing. She’s encouraged me to slow down as I read this part of God’s Word, and take a look at my walk with the Lord. Yesterday it was a question I had to ask myself about where I turn for answers when trouble comes. Higgs also challenged me to consider who I am in good times as well as in bad. It was a good first day in the book of Ruth.

But I think those of us who fancy ourselves writers need to be careful not to interject our own bias and/or hangups into our interpretation of Scripture. I’m sure I’ve been guilty of that, and will try to do better in the future. I want Scripture to speak for itself and not assume I know what’s going on behind the scene.

That being said, I whole-heartedly disagree with Mrs. Higg’s reasoning behind Naomi’s seemingly change of heart. From what I read in these verses, there is nothing to indicate she was afraid of the reception she’d receive upon return to Canaan with two Moabite daughters-in-law in tow. I don’t see that she was a menopausal emotional basket case. In fact, I see nothing of a self-serving motive for why Naomi seems to suddenly do an about-face.

The only thing we know for sure is that three women started out on a journey. Naomi stops and offers the younger women a chance to decide for themselves whether or not they will continue. I see selfless love in Naomi’s words, and I see a lesson all parents must learn.

You know that your decision to follow Jesus was a personal decision you had to make. The same is true for your children. We bring up those precious ones in the way they should go. We take them to church, pray before meals, talk with them about right and wrong, about Jesus and their need for the Savior.

You can take a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.

And you know that.

Naomi chose to leave her life of sin and embrace the one True God. She brought her daughters-in-law as far as she could, but there came the time she had to let them choose for themselves. I see a loving mother setting her children free, knowing she couldn’t force them to choose her God or follow her path.

Some of you have experienced the heartache of watching a child walk away, turning a back on God and embracing a life of sin. Is that what Naomi felt as she watched Orpah walk away?

Some of you – I pray most of you – have known the joy of watching a child turn from sin, choose to embrace the God you love, and walk with you in relationship with the Savior. I think that’s what Naomi felt when Ruth clung to her.

Parents, you have the awesome responsibility to teach, to demonstrate, to model what it means to be saved by grace, and to walk with Jesus. Don’t take that lightly because the window for this ministry is fast closing. Your kids are growing up and learning to make decisions for themselves – right or wrong. Help them learn the blessings that come from choosing right, and the painful consequences for choosing the wrong.

As much as you’d like it to be different, their decision to follow Christ is their’s alone. I think Naomi wanted both her daughters-in-law to choose her God. (my opinion. Scripture isn’t clear about that). I think you want your children to choose your God, too.

But in the end, it’s not your choice.

Keep teaching. Keep praying. Keep following the Lord loud and strong. Keep loving. And keep hoping that one day they will choose to turn from sin and follow God. Keep believing that God’s Word doesn’t return void.

I’m praying for you.

Pursuing God’s Heart

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2 Samuel

Does it ever make you wonder how David, the adulterous murderer, could be considered a man after God’s own heart? What’s up with that? Seems to me those are opposite character traits.

In her study book entitled, “Seamless” (Lifeway; 2018; p. 99), Angie Smith said something that hit home for me today. She writes:

“David wasn’t a man after God’s own heart because David didn’t sin. He was a man after God’s own heart because he kept coming back to God.”

David kept pursuing God’s heart even after falling repeatedly. I can’t think of anything that’s more encouraging to me in my walk with the Lord right now.

I sin. Sometimes I fall into a familiar sin I’ve confessed before. Then I get down on myself. “How can I go to God and ask Him to forgive the same sin for the umpteenth time? Why would He want to?”

Well, because that’s WHO He is!

If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) That’s a picture of unlimited grace for a repentant sinner.

Paul said that he pressed on toward the goal of knowing Christ and becoming more like Jesus. (see Philippians 3:14). He’s not describing a peaceful jog. It’s a grueling marathon, sometimes falling, sometimes weary, sometimes tripped up by obstacles. But at the same time continuing to keep the goal in view, standing up again, allowing God to brush him off and clean him up, then pressing on.

David pursued God’s heart. That’s why, even though he committed some doozie sins, we know him as a man after God’s own heart.

Most of us are not adulterers or murderers. But we are all sinners. The question is, can we be described as men and women after God’s own heart? I pray that is so.

I would encourage all of us to start our day by sincerely praying:

Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me. (Psalm 51:10-12)

Then press on, forgetting what is behind. Today is a new day. Pursue God’s heart.

Too Harsh?

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Deuteronomy 34

Have you ever thought God was a bit too harsh when he prevented Moses from entering the Promised Land? Moses had tapped a rock like he’d done before to get water. Sure, he was frustrated and angry at the time, and expressed an “I’ll show you,” attitude toward the people. Sure, God had told him to speak to the rock this time, and said nothing about tapping it, so there was that. But Moses had worked hard most of his adult life, trying to get a thousand Jews into the Promised Land. One goal. One focus. Every waking minute was spent toward that end. Plus, he was a good man!

But when Moses stood right there in front of the Promised Land, steps away from realizing his goal, God slammed the door in his face.

Harsh.

Where is patience, slow to anger, abounding in love? Where is forgiveness?

Angie Smith, in her book “Seamless” published by Lifeway, said something I hadn’t considered before. It’s found on page 79:

“Moments after Moses was blocked from the promised land, God brought him into an eternal life with the Father. The loss was momentary. Temporary. It paled in comparison to what was next.”

I love that.

The consequence for his disobedience was an important lesson for the Jews, and us. It doesn’t matter who you are, disobedience of any kind is rightly punished by God. All of us are to obey God or face the consequences.

For Moses, however, his momentary disappointment was replaced by the most amazing experience of his life – entering into the arms of God in a place too wonderful for words; a place that made Moses forget the so called Promised Land without regret.

This life is full of disappointment, often caused by disobedience. There are also times of blessings as we enjoy an imperfect relationship with God. But take heart.

We believers will one day be ushered into the Presence of God where all of it – good and bad – will pale in comparison to looking into the eyes of our Savior and getting lost in His embrace.

Was God’s punishment for Moses’ sin too harsh? Believe me, Moses hasn’t given a thought to what we see as loss. Not one thought.

Say Your Name

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Genesis 32

I love that, and am convicted by the fact that, before God would bless Jacob He made him say his name – DECEIVER. Jacob had lived his life as a deceiver. God wanted him to own up to it.

Sometimes I think we make it too easy for people we want to lead to the Lord, and perhaps we lead them into a false Christianity without meaning to. We tell them Jesus died to pay for our sins, that if we confess that we are sinners in need of the Savior, “He is faithful and just to forgive our sins…”

That’s all true. Hallelujah!

But is acknowledging our “sins” the same as owning up to them? We aren’t all adulterers, but some people are. We aren’t all liars, but some people do lie. We aren’t all thieves, but there are some who take things that don’t belong to them. We aren’t all narcissistic, but some people look at the world through a very self-centered lens.

If I simply have to ask God to forgive my sins, I don’t have to look inside my heart. I don’t have to confront the specific things I have done to anger and offend Him. I don’t have to look at the areas where I disobey and reject Him. It’s much easier to acknowledge that I, along with every other human being, have fallen short of God’s demands.

Which makes me recognize the fact that God didn’t ask Jacob to state his gender or his membership in the human race. He said: What is your name?

So what name is God asking you to declare? Cheat? Arrogant? Homosexual? Gossip? Angry? Unforgiving? Deceiver? You all know that list of names is long. You won’t identify as all of them. You will identify as some.

After Jacob identified himself as a deceiver, God changed his name to Israel, “You have struggled with God and with man and have prevailed.” (28b) He went from one who lied and cheated to get what he wanted, to someone who struggled between the evil within him and the God who wanted better for him – and Israel won! He later confessed that he was amazed that He had seen God face to face, and God spared him.

I challenge us all to take an honest inventory of our hearts’ condition. Hear God asking us to say our name so that He can change it into something God-honoring and beautiful.